Oto ga Suki
by Kotoni-Chan
Summary: Shinobu is a young, self-centered assassin in the organization AXE. As a trick by his sister, Shinobu gets sent to M-Uni on a top secret 'mission' and meets Miyagi, a mysterious professor. Maybe this mission isn't as fake as Risako thought it was...
1. Grow Up

The giant metal door coated in thick red rust creaked noisily as the unknown figure slipped into the supposedly empty warehouse. With a retreating glance to be sure they wasn't seen, the cloaked person swiftly shut the heavy door and continued walking ahead.

The room was dimly lit by the orange glint of the setting sun shining through the cracked windows that were placed close to the seemingly high ceiling. A door could be seen in the back of the room, in a similar state to the one the figure just passed through. This time, however, instead of reaching down to grab the handle, the stranger reached out and touched the worn out brick the door was attached to. Feeling around for a few seconds, a loose brick was found beside the door handle and the gloved hand pulled it out, revealing a small red button. Holding the hand up to the concealed face, the glove was slipped off with the stranger's teeth and the thumb was placed on the button. Some scanning noises could be heard as a row of neon green lines of light flashed over the thumb. With a light beep, the door made a whirring sound and a little number pad came out of the door. The ungloved hand pushed the code in with skill, and after another beep the door began to open.

Stepping into the pitch black room, a bright white light flashed on overhead, revealing an elevator-like room. The door shut and the neon green lights flashed over the strange body, going forward and backward a few times.

"Confirmed," a robotic woman's voice announced out of nowhere, and another keypad appeared beside the rusted door, with the numbers 1, 2, and 0 on it. The figure pushed the 0 button and the elevator began to move down.

The walls were pure white. The strange figure walked down the impossibly bright hall and came up to a thick, titanium wall. As if on cue, another keypad emerged from the vault-like door and the figure punched the code in. Another beep was heard and the door opened and the figure stepped inside the busy room, unbuttoning the long coat they were wearing.

"Oh, welcome sir!" A woman smiled as she greeted him from behind her desk.

"He's here!" Another one said on a phone, talking to someone. The coat was pulled off to reveal a teen with dirty blond hair and grey eyes. He wore a scowl as he pulled off his last remaining glove and threw it on the floor, along with the forgotten coat. A woman ran by and picked up the discarded items, but he paid her no heed.

"Shinobu-kun, where have you been?" A tall, raven haired man asked him as he approached the teen, a plain look on his face.

"Oh, hey Nowaki," The teen smirked towards his friend as the two continued walking. "The boss sent me on another mission. It's safe to say I aced it." He grinned triumphantly. Nowaki laughed lightheartedly.

"That's the sixth one this week! That's got to be a new record!" He smiled. Shinobu crossed his arms.

"Did you expect anything less? I am the best after all." Nowaki gave another happy smile as the two rounded a corner.

"I can't fight you on that," he nodded, "but you don't want to get too cocky. You could be the 'killed' instead of the 'killer'." Shinobu merely shrugged his shoulders.

"I doubt it. Anyways, I can't wait to see the look on Risako's face. She's gonna flip!"

"The supervisor?" Nowaki asked. The shorter teen nodded and smiled.

"You know neechan hates it when I come back from missions alive." He smirked. "That's why she always sends me on the most dangerous ones, the ones people are too afraid to do." The memory of his last mission filled his mind and he turned towards the taller man. "The one I was just on was so easy though. The man with the hit was the head of an undercover drug association. He was blackmailing other major country officials into letting him get away with it, and then disguised himself as a pilot on the plane that was carrying the shipment of drugs to America. I was undercover as a worker of his and stowed away on the plane. I simply snapped his neck and landed the plane and disappeared after contacting the authorities. The world is better off without him, and now without anyone to lead them the rest of his establishment will fall." The two stopped in front of a pair of large, white double doors.

"Wow, lovely story." The taller male laughed. "Anyways, good luck," Nowaki smiled happily as he patted Shinobu on the shoulder and turned to walk away. He stopped and turned towards the teen. "Tell me how it goes later!" Shinobu nodded and walked into his sister's office.

"W-welcome back." Risako muttered as she watched her younger sibling walk through the doors. "I'm guessing the mission was a success?" She groaned. Shinobu smirked.

"Of course, you did hire _me_ to do it." He said in a cocky voice. Risako sighed.

"And the target?" She asked.

"Dead, just like ordered. Broken neck." She nodded, understanding how Shinobu killed the man.

"Even I thought that case would be extreme for you." She sighed as Shinobu crossed his arms.

"I've had harder cases then that." He smirked.

"I'm sure," Risako sneered. She quickly composed herself, pushing her dark, dirty blonde hair back behind her ear as she picked up a stack of papers and began shuffling through them. "Anyways, glad to see you made it back safely." She said without any enthusiasm. "Have a seat." Her voice was cold and hard as she gestured towards the leather chair that sat in front of her desk. Shinobu obeyed and sat down. Another sigh escaped Risako's lips as she sat the papers down and intertwined her fingers together, resting them on the smooth oak surface of her desk.

"This is your sixth successful kill this week, a new record I believe," She said, her voice calm and level. Shinobu smirked wider.

"Are you going to promote me?" He asked; a happy gleam in his dull eyes. Risako chuckled.

"Shinobu," She started.

"Neechan," He said mockingly. She sighed once again.

"Shinobu, be serious." Said teen instantly froze. When Risako said to be serious you knew you should be serious. "You and I both know you are a talented assassin. Better then anyone we've ever had, despite your age. There's no doubt in my mind that you should be promoted." The last part sounded like the woman actually had to force herself to say it.

"Then promote me already." Shinobu spat, annoyed at his sister's antics. "Why would I still be at an intermediate level when I'm better then everyone you have on the _honors_ list?" He asked. Risako smirked.

"You lack something that no one else is." She smiled mischievously.

"Impossible!" Shinobu screamed. "I'm a master at three different kinds of martial arts, I speak ten different languages, I'm smarter than most of the people in this organization, I can kill someone with my hands tied behind my back, and I have never failed a mission. What the hell could I be lacking?" The younger boy screamed, now standing towards an empty desk. Suddenly, Risako appeared in front of him and, with her slender index finger, poked him hard in the chest to make him sit down.

"Modesty." She answered. Shinobu glowered.

"Who needs modesty when you're the best and everyone knows it?" He asked, crossing his arms. Risako sighed for the umpteenth time that day.

"Shinobu, everyone _knows_ you're the best. You don't need to say it every chance you get." When the younger brother was about to interject, the older sibling held out her hand to silence him. "This organization, AXE, is run by the government. We do the dirty work so they don't have to, killing off drug dealers, terrorists, anyone who poses as a threat to the higher ups. It's our, and your, job as an assassin."

"I _know_!" Shinobu whined when Risako shushed him again.

"We work as a team, so when one person fails, we all fail. With one person's success we all are successful." Shinobu rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, slumping lower into his chest. "When one person looks bad," Risako continued, "we all look bad. And you, my dear brother, are making us all look _very_ bad."

"So? What, are you going to fire me or something?" He asked, a smirk playing on his lips, already knowing the answer to that question. Risako turned and sat back down at her large desk, resting her head in the palms of her hands.

"Despite how much I would like to, just because you are so annoying, doing that would surely bring in trouble for me which I would prefer to avoid. Instead, I want to _challenge_ you." An evil grin played on her light pink lips and Shinobu watched her with confusion.

"Didn't you just try to challenge me?" He asked. Risako laughed.

"No, no, that was a challenge for someone at the intermediate level, which you are obviously above. You want that promotion?" She asked. Shinobu nodded warily. "Then I am going to send you on the type of mission the experts usually go on, and if you succeed then I'll promote you." The boy's eyes widened as he quickly stood up.

"Really?" He asked when he froze.

Something's up.

"What's the catch?" Risako smiled at her younger brother and looked at him innocently.

"Why, Shinobu-niichan, I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Okay, now I know something's up." He growled.

"Yes, yes, you caught me. There is just one little catch…" Risako stated as she began to shuffle through her papers that sat on her desk nonchalantly. This time, it was Shinobu's turn to sigh.

"What?" He asked, clearly annoyed. He knew that when his sister called him "niichan" things weren't going to end well for him.

"You see, this assignment was picked specifically for you, since you are the youngest and the only one of the proper age for it…" she began.

"What?" Shinobu asked again.

"We would have set you up with an easier task, but we knew you liked a challenge…"

"What?" Shinobu asked, again.

"You have to go to…"

"FOR GOD'S SAKE, WHAT?" Shinobu screamed at his smirking sister. The woman didn't even seem fazed as she finished her sentence.

"…college." She finished. Shinobu froze.

"Wait, what?" Clearly he didn't hear her right.

"I said you have to go to college." Risako repeated, grinning.

"…No way." Shinobu simply answered. "Give me a different assignment." Risako laughed.

"Aww, cute. You think you have a choice." Shinobu fumed.

"You know damn well that I never stepped foot in any school before! And you expect me to just jump on in?" the woman chuckled.

"Calm down, it's not like you're actually going to college, you'll be undercover as a student. We have received word that one of our enemies has infiltrated Mitsuhashi University, a college near Tokyo, and their subordinates are undercover as students and possibly faculty."

"Which enemy?" Shinobu asked, raising his hand to his chin in thought. Risako shrugged.

"We have so many enemies that it's hard to say."

"Odd," Shinobu thought out loud. Usually his sister had all the details to every mission, no matter how many enemies were involved. "So what do you want me to do?"

"I'm glad you asked!" She smiled as she flipped through the assignment papers in her hand that were on her desk. "We need you to go undercover as a student, uncover the enemy, find out their plans, and kill them if necessary."

"That doesn't sound any harder then my other missions. Easier, actually." The teen frowned. Risako laughed.

"It sounds easy, but think about it: There are thousands of students and tons of teachers and faculty. It can take you weeks just to uncover one of the subordinates, and you don't have much time either. If you take too long and whatever the enemy has planned moves into action, then those innocent students could be in danger, and we are liable for that." Shinobu's breath hitched.

"I-I see. Well, I can handle anything, even something as trivial as this." He informed the woman with his usual nonchalant expression. Risako smiled falsely.

"We are sending Nowaki-kun with you as well. He has just been filled in on the details as well."

"What?" The boy asked. "How is this mission to test _my_ skill if you're sending someone to help me?"

"Now, now, I thought you'd be thrilled to have your companion join you?" the older sibling smirked.

"I-I am, but how is this testing my abilities as an assassin?" He asked. Yeah, it would be great to have a friend there, but it didn't make sense.

"Nowaki-kun is older, so he is going undercover as a faculty member to lend you a hand, since it would be pretty hard to investigate other teachers as a student. If he did that, your investigation won't take as long."

"I see." Shinobu said after a minute. "When do we leave?" He was eager to get started on this mission.

"Tomorrow."

Okay, not that eager.

"What? Why so soon? Shouldn't I have a few days to get ready?" the grey-eyed teen whined.

"Oh, you're such a child. Did you want to take a nap later too?" Risako cooed mockingly, causing her brother's face to flush.

"I'm not a child, I'm a young adult!" He shouted. Risako shrugged.

"Whatever, just go get ready, your car leaves early tomorrow." Frustrated, Shinobu gave his sister a quick glare as he turned and walked out of the room. Once she was sure her brother was out of earshot, Risako grinned and grabbed the stack of blank papers she was supposedly reading from and threw them into the recycling bin in the corner of the room.

"Perfect," She said mischievously.

* * *

Shinobu sighed as he shut the door to his sister's office and walked off down the hall.

"I heard about the assignment." Nowaki's voice said happily from beside the teen.

"Sorry you had to get dragged into it," Shinobu apologized. "I had no idea that she was planning that." The raven haired man shrugged.

"I think it's going to be fun!" He smiled. "Plus, since you're young, being in an environment like a college could really improve your social skills and change your perspective on life, especially since you are never around people your own age." The grey eyed teen shrugged and Nowaki continued. "Though, I don't really understand why they would want me to go with you, seeing as I'm not really an assassin and probably won't be of much help…"

"Don't say that, just because your job isn't to kill the people we're after doesn't mean you won't be any help!" Shinobu crossed his arms and closed his eyes. "You can fight, you know all about treating and concocting different poisons, your really smart, trust me; you will be a big help." Nowaki's eyes seemed to sparkle and he flashed the teen a wide grin.

"Thanks Shinobu-kun! I won't let you down!" he said happily. "Now if you excuse me, I'm going to go pack. We leave early tomorrow I heard."

"Yeah," Shinobu sighed as he waved his friend off and turned around the corner towards his room, pushing the button on the large, heavy white sliding door and stepping inside. He stood there for a second until the door closed, then ran up to his medium sized bed and plopped down, burying his pale face in the fluffy white pillow.

_This is just like neechan, sending me on a mission without being told about it ahead of time. But there is something weird about all of this…_ Shinobu thought back to the conversation he had with his sister just moments ago. _She didn't even know what enemy I'm supposed to uncover. Usually she, as the head of AXE, usually has all of this information written down for the employees so they know what they're up against. Unless… _Shinobu shot up in his bed, eyes wide with realization. _This is part of my mission! She must be setting me up so that it's up to me to discover which of our enemies I'm dealing with! This must be how they train people at the expert level! That or this is how they discover what enemies they are dealing with in the first place! They send experts on missions to investigate! _A triumphant grin became known on the teens face. _If neechan thinks this is going to be a challenge she has another thing coming! _He stood up and walked over to his dresser, grabbing random articles of clothing and tossing them onto his bed.

"That promotion is mine!"

**A/N**

**This is my second story ever! I know the first chapter doesn't seem long or interesting, but this was just trying to ease you into the actual plot that will be revealing itself here next chapter hopefully(?)! I wanted to introduce Shinobu and kind of show you his personality and give you a bit of background info about the whole assassin organization thing. The next chapters should be longer! Also, AXE is just a name I made up for the assassin organization, it doesn't mean anything, and neither will the other names I mention unless I specifically tell you they mean something, which will be revealed in the text.**

**This story will contain all of the couples and characters, revealed in their own way. Also, some really random or minor characters that you won't expect to be involved in anyway might actually have HUGE roles! I like to keep people on their toes, so expect the unexpected.**

**I'm a really slow updater, but the more reviews I get the faster I update, so if you like this chapter and want to see what happens next then review! I'll love you! :D**

**Coming Next Chapter****: Shinobu meets Miyagi, but was this the first time the two have crossed paths? Fate? Maybe! Also, Nowaki loves his undercover role at M-University, mostly because of the cute associate professor that walks by his office all the time.**

**Please Review!**


	2. Pokerface

Shinobu didn't really mind having to get up early; In fact, he could be considered a morning person. However, even a morning person would be grouchy and grumpy if they were woken up at 3 a.m., especially after just getting to sleep not even three hours before due to packing for an unexpected trip.

"Shinobu-niichan! Wakey, wakey!" The teen's sister's voice rang through the intercom connected to his bedroom. Shinobu settled for ignoring her and throwing the blankets back over his head. "The car will be here in ten minutes!" Risako's voice said, breaking the tired teen out of his stupor and filling him with panic.

"What the heck! I don't even have time to shower!" He screamed as he rushed about his room, throwing on a white, button up shirt with an orange sweater vest over it and grey pants. The teen grabbed his suitcase and pushed open the heavy doors, too impatient to wait for them to open. The halls were, of course, shining with the usual bright white light and reflecting off of the too-white walls, making it harder for the sleep deprived boy to see. People, despite the time, were still scattered around the underground building, working or just hanging around waiting for their shift to end and get to bed. Nowaki was one of those people who weren't assassins, but they specialized it other things that helped the assassins do their jobs, like make weapons, antidotes, filed the paperwork, and more. Though their jobs were just as important, Shinobu shuddered at the thought of not being able to get to bed until the wee hours of the morning.

_Nowaki probably hasn't even had the chance to sleep yet… He's probably going to be really tired. _Shinobu thought as he wiped more sleep away from his eyes and rounded another corner, bumping into the man in his thoughts.

"Oh, sorry Shinobu-kun!" The raven haired man apologized as he helped his younger friend off of the floor he was knocked down on. Shinobu dusted himself off and shrugged.

"No problem. Anyways, is the car here yet?" The grey-eyed teen asked, looking towards the large titanium doors that led into the carport where they kept vehicles, planes, jets, and everything else under the sun. Nowaki nodded.

"Yeah, Risako-san was just coming down to talk to us before we left." The dark-eyed man smiled as Shinobu yawned. "Tired?" He asked. The teen nodded.

"Yeah, two and a half hours of sleep isn't exactly what I would call refreshing. Why aren't you tired?" Nowaki smiled again.

"Oh, Risako gave me the rest of the day off to pack and rest yesterday!"

_Of course_. Shinobu thought as he yawned again.

"I'm here!" Risako's cheery voice rang from behind the two. Shinobu jumped but Nowaki didn't budge and merely laughed at the younger boy's reaction.

"What do you want?" The light haired teen growled at his sister.

"Oh, I came to give you boys a goodbye speech!" She smiled, pulling out a small piece of paper. "I have some things to warn you about." Shinobu raised an eyebrow at his older sister as she began to speak. "First, I'm not sure how long you guys will be gone, so behave!" She looked over at her brother.

"Why are you just looking at me?" Shinobu barked. Risako sighed.

"Second, I don't want you two to display any kind of not-normal skills, such as specialized fighting skills, etc. It could possibly blow your cover."

"Duh," Shinobu spat. Risako's glare hardened as she continued reading.

"Third, don't contact us unless absolutely necessary because we aren't sure if the enemy present has a tracking device or not, and even though our walls can block any outside signal, we don't want to risk the possibility that they have something more advanced then what our security system knows how to deal with." She looked over at her brother, ready for his input, but when he showed no attempt at giving one she continued. "Finally, do not, and I repeat DO NOT trust an ordinary person enough to blow your cover, or give them the opportunity to find out who you really are. It might be an enemy, and this would result in an automatic fail of the mission, and as you know with your situation, Shinobu-niichan, that failure is not an option." Risako grinned evilly. "Of course, other types of failures include getting killed, death of an innocent civilian, not following the rules…"

"Yeah, yeah, we know. We've been doing this for how many years now?" Shinobu growled and Risako laughed.

"You're right. Now then, you two best be off! I picked out a lovely apartment for the two of you to share, and by the time you get there you'll have some time to sleep before you have to be at the school, since you woke up so early." The dark blonde woman said as she turned to walk away.

"When you said the car was going to be here early, I wish you would have told me it would be THIS early!" Shinobu growled as his sister winked and blew him a kiss before walking away down the hall.

"Good luck!" She shouted as she rounded the corner and disappeared. Nowaki smiled as he turned towards the light haired teen.

"Well, ready to head out?" he asked, opening the door and feeling the crisp stale air of the large underground garage waft into the hall.

"I guess," Shinobu muttered, reaching down and grabbing his bag before walking out after the taller male. "I swear she hates me," he added as an after thought, making the raven haired man chuckle.

"Now, now, of course she doesn't. She just likes giving you a hard time. It's what older siblings do." The two walked up to a black shiny van with dark tinted windows and climbed into the back seat.

"I doubt it," Shinobu replied as he buckled up and slumped in his seat, crossing his arms and leaning his head against the large window. "Once I complete this mission, though, I'll put her in her place since I know deep down she doesn't want me to succeed!" Nowaki sighed at the younger boy's enthusiasm and gave a soft smile.

_Shinobu-kun needs to learn that he can't win everything…_He thought as he leaned back in his seat, looking away from the arrogant teen. _I hope Risako's plan works out alright._

* * *

The car ride continued on in silence, neither male saying anything besides a few small words here and there. Shinobu took the opportunity to catch up on some must needed sleep while Nowaki read a book that he pulled out of his shoulder bag. The teen eyed the cover of the novel up and down with curiosity.

"Hey Nowaki, what are you reading?" Shinobu asked. He wasn't particularly interested in what the book was or what it was about, he was just bored with sitting in silence with nothing to do, not thinking to bring anything to amuse himself with while he rushed out of his room this morning. Nowaki turned towards the boy with his eyes sparkling.

"This is one of my favorite books! It's called Oto ga Suki." Shinobu raised an eyebrow.

"Sound Love?" What a weird title for a book. What's it about?" Nowaki grinned.

"Its about a very strong and intelligent man who is discovered to be extraordinary at building machines and is forced to cut off all ties to his family and friends and serve under an evil mastermind and build weapons for him. The man managed to escape and meets a boy who happens to be related to a subordinate of the mastermind (without the man knowing they were related and the boy not knowing about his relation's job) and the two fall in love, but the evil man is searching for him. The novel talks about the man and the boy's love for each other, and about the secret the man is keeping from the boy about being hunted by the evil guy."

"Wow that actually sounds really interesting, the title made it sound kind of sappy." Shinobu said as leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. "You don't hear about many stories with gay lovers in it." He mused. Nowaki nodded his head.

"It's true."

"Who's it written by?" the teen asked. "I might want to look up other works by the author." Shinobu stated. Nowaki grinned even wider.

"That's great! His name is Akikawa Yayoi. All of his works are similar to this; they all have some kind of unfortunate person trying to get away from their life, who finds some light in their one special person." Shinobu watched as a soft smile came onto Nowaki's lips as he stared down at the book silently, a distant look on his face.

"Have you found that 'Special Someone' yet, Nowaki? That novel has a gay couple in it, so maybe you're into that kind of thing?" The teen teased, slightly elbowing the older man who merely blushed in response.

"N-no, I haven't found someone, but I honestly don't care if they are a male or female. As long as I love them and they love me." He turned his head towards the younger male. "What about you?" Shinobu gasped at the question and crossed his arms, suddenly feeling like a gossiping girl, even though he was the one that brought up the conversation.

"No!" He spat, looking out the window to hide his blush. "I'm not looking for someone because I want to be more worried about work then planning dates with someone. Plus, girls are really annoying."

"Then what about guys?" Nowaki asked, opening his book back up and flipping to the page he was on. "Do you have a gender preference?" Shinobu shrugged.

"I don't know, I've never been interested in anyone since…" He trailed off as he tried to recall the far off, distant memory from when he first joined the organization as an official member. "…never mind." He sighed, the memory not coming back to him. "I can't remember the first person I liked since it was three years ago." Nowaki turned towards him and raised both of his eyebrows.

"Really? That was around the time you became an assassin, right?" he asked. Shinobu nodded.

"Yeah, I think I met them on my very first mission too, but I can't remember who they are or what they looked like. I can hardly remember liking them except for the fact that I felt really warm around them." Nowaki nodded.

"Yeah, that's how you know you like someone: when you feel warm and fuzzy around them. It's a shame you can't remember who they are." He said sadly. Shinobu shrugged.

"Who cares, I don't have time to deal with a relationship right now. I just want to complete this mission and advance from the intermediate level assassin to an expert level assassin. Now maybe we should stop talking about things like 'love' because I'm starting to feel like a girl." Nowaki laughed and the two went and did their own things, Nowaki reading his book and Shinobu trying to go back to sleep.

* * *

It was around 6 a.m. when the duo made it to their temporary apartment complex. Shinobu stomped inside, angrily throwing his bag on the decent sized couch and crossing his arms in a huff.

"This is just like that good-for-nothing sister of mine to make us leave early, saying we'd have time to get here and sleep, when in reality; we arrive just in time to get ready to leave again! I am so going to strangle her next time I see her!" He growled, grabbing a pillow off of the couch and squeezing it, imagining it was his neechan's head.

"You're still tired? I thought you slept on the ride here." Nowaki asked, coming out from one of the rooms after setting his bag down. Shinobu shook his head.

"I tried to, but I find it hard to sleep in moving vehicles while sitting upright." Nowaki nodded in understanding.

"I see. Well, you can try to catch a quick nap and I can wake you when it's time to leave, or you can get ready to go and just sleep when you get back."

"I'll just go ahead and hop in the shower and get ready." Shinobu replied, walking towards the quaint bathroom.

After about half an hour later, Shinobu emerged from the bathroom feeling slightly refreshed and a little less grumpy. He slid on his white button up shirt and buttoned it, walking down the hall looking for his friend, seeing him in his room with a white doctor's trench coat on. Shinobu smiled.

"That suits you really well," He said. Nowaki grinned.

"You think? I've always loved wearing these things. That's why I work in the poison/antidote section of the organization. Of course, that's why I also jumped at the chance to be a school nurse." The two laughed and continued to get ready when a beeping noise was heard from Shinobu's watch.

"Guess it's time to leave." He mumbled, slipping on his shoes. Nowaki smiled.

"Yep! You're going to have fun, trust me." Shinobu raised an eyebrow.

"Oh? And if I don't?" He asked, a smirk forming on his face. Nowaki sighed.

"Then I'll let you make whatever you want for dinner." Shinobu smirked and shook hands with the taller male.

"Deal," he said as he and Nowaki stepped out of their apartment and into the hall, heading down the steps towards the exit.

"So, did you finish that book yet?" Shinobu asked as the two walked out the front entrance of their apartment building. "I saw you were pretty far earlier, so…" Nowaki smiled.

"Yeah, I finished it before we arrived here. I have to say, though, the ending isn't what I expected it to be."

"Really?" the teen asked, interested. "Why? What happened?"

"Well, I don't know if I should tell you because I might ruin the story for you." The raven haired man replied.

"Nah, just tell me." The light haired boy insisted. Nowaki sighed.

"Okay, well, in the end the evil mastermind found out where the man lived and who he loved, so he threatened to hurt the boy and possibly kill him unless the man agreed to come back and work with him without running away again. So the man writes a note to his young lover saying that he was going to be gone a while and leaves." Shinobu waited for Nowaki to continue but after a few seconds he realized the man was done.

"That's it?" Shinobu asked, raising an eyebrow. "He just…_leaves_?" Nowaki nodded.

"Yep, that's the end of the book. It's strange, because this author usually never leaves things off with a cliff hanger without mentioning a continuation; however, Akikawa never mentioned writing another book for the series, so it must be over."

"Poor kid, never getting a chance to say bye to the guy in person and having to hear about him leaving through a note." Nowaki nodded.

"Yeah, though since the story is open ended, you can imagine that the two met up again eventually." Shinobu shrugged.

"I guess. I need to read that book sometime." The two stopped at the train station and boarded, taking a seat and waiting for their destination stop.

"So what class did Risako sign you up for?" Nowaki asked after a while of sitting in silence.

"Some literature class with a teacher called Professor Kamijou. At least Risako managed to so something right, I'm actually a fan of literature."

"Well that's good!" Nowaki replied. "I wonder what your teacher is like." The teen shrugged as the duo got off at their stop.

"I don't care, I doubt I'd be paying attention much in class anyways, I'm on a mission, remember? So don't forget to do your part and investigate the faculty and whatever students come to your office, okay?" Shinobu ordered. Nowaki held his hands up defensively.

"Don't worry, I won't let you down!" He grinned. The two continued on chatting about small random topics as the school came into view. Shinobu stopped at the school gates and, for the first time that day, felt a pang of nervousness.

_What the heck?_ He thought with confusion. _This is probably the first time I ever felt nervous on a mission._ Maybe it was the fact that this would be the first time he had ever stepped foot on school grounds before, considering that he had been home schooled since the day he could walk. Nowaki stopped walking ahead as he realized his friend wasn't following him. He turned to see the young teen frozen in place at the school gate.

"You okay?" he asked, concern showing in his voice. Shinobu snapped out of his stupor and nodded.

"Y-yeah, just…examining the school. You go on ahead." The light haired teen urged the soon-to-be school doctor.

"Are you sure?" He asked. Shinobu nodded.

"Yeah, go ahead!" He gave a small smile and Nowaki nodded and waved goodbye. Drawing in a deep breath, Shinobu stepped on the grounds and looked around slowly. Groups of teens around his age were huddled in small groups or by themselves, walking around before the start of the school day. Laughter, squeals from a nearby group of girls, and some whispers from beside the teen could be heard. Slowly, he turned around to see that they were all directed at _him_, and from _girls_. Shinobu felt very self conscious all of a sudden, and began to walk faster when he ran into what felt like a brick wall, only to back up and realize it was a large student.

"O-oh, sorry," Shinobu mumbled at the student. The guy was tall, at least six feet, had greasy black hair and a very large muscles. Shinobu stepped to the side in an attempt to

go around but the student stepped in front of him, blocking his path.

"You new here?" The guy asked rudely, a smirk forming on his face. Shinobu glared.

"So what if I am? Just leave me alone." He ordered, sensing that this guy wasn't going to want to play nice.

"We gotta rule about new freshman," The greasy haired guy said as two more students, most likely his lackeys, came up beside Shinobu.

"And what would that be?" Shinobu asked sarcastically, resisting the urge to show these people what a few years of martial arts training could do.

"They gotta pay a fee to get past us," the leader replied, holding out his hand. "Give us all the money you have on you, and we wont cause you any trouble…today."

"And if I don't? Shouldn't you little boys have learned by now that stealing someone's lunch money is wrong?" Shinobu spat, clenching his fists at his side. He knew he wouldn't be able to take these guys on with the other students around him for fear of blowing his cover, so the only other option left was to look like a petty wimp and run. He could surely outrun these guys, and later on when nobody was around he could gain revenge on them for attempting to beat him up. Suddenly, the leader of the group grabbed Shinobu by the collar and held him up to his face, feet barely touching the ground. This only made the smaller teen more irritated because the ugly, greasy haired student's breath smelt _horrible_.

"Well." The guy laughed and the other two joined in, "Here's a lesson for you." He held his fist back and Shinobu knew what was coming.

_Okay, I'll take a hit or two and then kick their asses later. _He thought as he closed his eyes calmly and braced himself for the hit that, after a few seconds, never came. Slowly, Shinobu opened an eye to see a taller man, probably a teacher of some sort, holding the student's arm back with ease.

"I won't accept bullying on school property or anywhere else, especially to new students. This is college, not middle school, so straighten up and head to the dean's office or I will take you there myself." His voice was calm, yet stern, and the three bullys exchanged looks of fear, the leader quickly releasing Shinobu and letting him drop to the ground. They quickly ran up to the school, out of sight within a few seconds. The light haired teen looked up towards his savior to get a better look. The man had dark violet eyes and short black hair. He wore a black suit and tie, and had a well built frame. All in all, he was pretty attractive for an older guy. Shinobu caught himself staring and realized he was still on the ground. Quickly picking himself up, he stood in front of the man and bowed slightly.

"T-thanks for that," he stuttered, embarrassed that someone else had to come help him. The man didn't say anything and Shinobu looked back up at him to see that he was staring intently back at him, shock and surprise written on his older features. "Umm…" the teen started, starting to feel uncomfortable under the teacher's gaze when the man mumbled something.

"You…" Shinobu heard him say, as if surprised to see a long lost friend walking down the sidewalk. Instantly Shinobu's eyes narrowed as he stared back at the man.

_Does this guy know me?_ He thought. _He has to; with the way he's staring at me. But I have no idea who the heck he is. Does he know I'm an assassin? Does he know about my mission?_ Suddenly, the man shook his head and gave a wide grin.

"Sorry about that," he apologized, scratching the back of his head. "Just got a little spaced out there for a second, but don't worry, it won't happen again." Shinobu raised an eyebrow.

"Do I look familiar or something? Like someone you know?" He asked, curious to see why this man had that kind of reaction when he was so sure it was their first time meeting. The man shook his head quickly.

"No, no, not at all! I don't know what I was thinking, really. Maybe I should lay off the caffeine in the mornings." He joked. Shinobu still refused to let his guard down in case this man was lying. "Anyways," he continued, "I'm Miyagi, the advanced Literature professor." He held out his hand for Shinobu to shake but the student made no move to grab it.

"My name is Shinobu Takatsuki, a literature student." The professor put his hand back, seemingly unaffected by the teen's lack of a physical greeting.

"Really? That's great! It's so nice to see youth so interested in the old world nowadays!" Shinobu watched the man's eyes light up and a big smile come across his face, though the boy couldn't help but feel that there was an ulterior motive for his over enthusiasm on the topic. The professor suddenly bent down and whispered, "If you survive Kamijou the Devil this year then you can take my class next year!" It took a minute for that phrase to register in his mind, for Shinobu was busy registering why being closer to this Professor Miyagi person made him feel so warm. Within a few seconds, however, the warmth was gone as the tall man backed up again and laughed.

"I wouldn't worry too much about him, just don't fall asleep whenever there's a book nearby." Shinobu, still confused about the warmth and even further confused by the statement just made by the professor, simply nodded. Miyagi lifted his arm and checked the watch attached to his wrist and sighed with what sounded like relief.

"Well, I better get going, I got to go get my class ready. You should be getting going too, Shinobu-chin. You wouldn't want to be late on the first day; Kamijou will not go easy on you!" He smiled and waved goodbye as he turned to walk away. Shinobu stood there for what felt like hours before he finally made an attempt to move and slowly walked towards the building with the remainder of the few students that remained outside.

_What is up with that guy? _Shinobu thought as he walked down the hall towards what he assumed to be his class. _First, he addresses me like we've met before then just brushes it off and changes the subject by covering it up with jokes and other nonsense, then he gets really close to me and I have a familiar warm feeling like I DO know him from somewhere! ARGH this is too confusing! I do know one thing though: In case that guy DOES know who I am, I'm going to have to keep a close eye on him. He could pose as a threat to my mission if he knows who I am and what I do. I'd have to kill him. _The last thought made Shinobu wince slightly, which was odd. He never thought badly about killing someone who needed to die, he just did what his instincts and training told him to do. He sighed and stepped into the giant, double oak doors and saw that nearly all of the seats in the class were filled save for one. He climbed up the steps towards one of the middle rows where the seat was and sat down, looking over at the person next to him. The kid had medium length dark chestnut brown hair with bright green eyes. He wore an orange and grey sweat shirt with blue jeans and sneakers. He was digging through his light brown shoulder bag when he let out a sigh and turned towards the light haired teen.

"Hey, I'm sorry, can I borrow a pencil for today? I forgot mine at home."

"Sure," Shinobu replied, digging into his bag and pulling out his spare mechanical pencil. The boy who looked no older the Shinobu smiled gratefully as he reached out and grabbed it.

"Thanks a lot!" He said happily. "You saved me! I'm Misaki Takahashi by the way."

"Shinobu Takatsuki," Shinobu said. "What did I save you from?" he then proceeded to ask. Suddenly, the doors opened and in stepped a man, probably around average height, with medium length light brown hair and glasses. The way he carried himself gave off a wave of arrogance that Shinobu ironically scoffed at.

"That," Misaki whispered.

"Hello class," The teacher said as he stood by the desk in the very front of the room. "My name is Kamijou, the assistant literature professor. Most of you already know this, but I've heard I have a few new faces today so I'm being courteous. For those of you who are new, the rules of my class are simple: pay attention and do your work. I will not tolerate disobedience, lack of supplies, or tardiness. With that said, let's begin." Instantly Shinobu's eyes wandered around the classroom, looking for signs of anything unusual to begin his search with. He would have to find a chance to go investigate that Miyagi guy again, to find out what he knows about him, but until then his job was to investigate the students. An idea formed in his head and the dirty blond teen turned towards the teen sitting beside him.

"Oi, Takahashi-san," Shinobu whispered. Misaki turned towards him and looked down to see the grey-eyed boy writing something on a piece of paper before sliding it in front of him. Misaki peered down and read the neat handwriting.

_**HAVE YOU SEEN OR HEARD ANYTHING WEIRD GOING ON AT THIS SCHOOL?**_

Misaki furrowed his brow before writing a quick response on the paper and sliding it back over.

_**What kind of things?**_

_**YOU KNOW, DISAPPEARENCES, MURDERS, PEOPLE GROWING WINGS AND FLYING AWAY… ANYTHING.**_

It didn't take long for the paper to be slid back over towards Shinobu.

_**No, but you can ask my friend Sumi-sempai. If you want to know any kind of gossip or rumors, he's the guy to ask. He sits two rows down from us on the right.**_

After reading Misaki's message, Shinobu scanned the seats to see a silver haired student resting his head on his hand in a bored fashion.

_That must be Sumi._ Shinobu thought as he scribbled down a thank you on the paper and slid it over to Misaki, who nodded in response.

"HEY YOU, TAKATSUKI-KUN! PAY ATTENTION!" Shinobu heard Professor Kamijou's voice ring out through the class as he saw a book flying towards him. Through his assassin instincts, the book came at him in slow motion, giving him plenty of time to dodge. But as he did so, he instantly regretted it, for he wanted to fit in with the class, and if being pelted by books meant fitting in then he should have done it.

Too late now.

The book soared past his head and into the desk behind him as the secret assassin leaned back far enough to avoid being hit. Once he sat up he saw Kamijou narrow his eyes as if calculating something before picking up the lesson where he left off, almost as if nothing happened. Shinobu looked around at the students who looked as if the teacher didn't just stop the lesson to throw a book at a student who narrowly dodged it with ease. The teen looked back over at Misaki who looked at him and slid the paper back over to him.

_**That was so cool! You have really good reflexes!**_

_**DOES HE DO THAT OFTEN?**_

_**Only to the people who break the rules.**_

Now Shinobu understood what Professor Miyagi was talking about when he called the teacher Kamijou the Devil, and warned him not to fall asleep with a book in his hand. That man had an arm!

_A normal teacher with an arm like that and a dead on aim isn't normal._ Shinobu thought. _Maybe I'm just paranoid, but maybe Kamijou is an enemy. Maybe Miyagi is an enemy as well. That could be why he looked as if he knew me yet denied it. Maybe he looked me up somehow? _Great, so far almost everyone he ran into today is some kind of suspicious person. _Maybe I should ask Nowaki about this._

The bell rang and the students stood up and began to pile out of the classroom. Shinobu gathered his papers around and looked over at Misaki, giving a small bow.

"Thanks for the information about your friend Sumi-sempai. I'll talk to him later."

"No problem, but if you don't mind me asking, why do you want to know if anything weird is going on around here?" The grey-eyed teen looked towards his newly found friend with a serious expression, feeling that there was something the boy wasn't mentioning, a hidden reason for wanting as answer. Shinobu, however, didn't get the feeling that it was a bad reason, because something in the bright green eyes of the boy held a lot of sadness that the assassin knew Misaki was just trying to cover up with happiness.

_No matter what I think he feels, he could still be an enemy tricking me so I must stay on guard and lie._ Shinobu gave the dark haired teen a smile.

"I heard from a friend of mine before I came here that I should be careful, because he had heard some rumors that strange things have been happening." It was a perfect lie, and Shinobu pulled it off with ease. He could get out of almost any situation with a simple lie, and, though he hated it, his lying skill was very handy. Apparently, this wasn't the answer Misaki hoped to hear as he gave off a wide forced smile, stood up, and bowed.

"I see. Well, thanks for helping me today! Are you going to sit here again tomorrow?" He asked, a glimmer of hope in his eyes. Shinobu flashed another smile and nodded.

"Sure, if you want me too," He replied. Misaki nodded.

"Of course! Well then, I'll talk to you later! My brother is picking me up so I don't want to keep him waiting." Misaki turned and started heading down the steps.

"You live with your brother?" Shinobu asked, following him down the steps. The dark haired teen froze before turning to face the secret assassin.

"Umm, yeah… I started living with him again recently. I-I used to live with someone else, but they…" Misaki trailed off, obviously not wanting to continue.

"It's okay, I understand, it's not something you can easily talk about." Misaki nodded.

"Sorry, but I really should be going. See you tomorrow, Takatsuki-san!" He smiled again before running out of the room. Shinobu smiled until the boy was out of eyeshot and let out a long drawn out sigh and exited the room, walking on down the long hall.

_I wonder what that was about._ Shinobu thought as he walked into the nurse's office. Nowaki was treating a blond girl with a pony-tail who had a cut on her arm. She looked up at him with, Shinobu swore, were hearts in her eyes. She also had an obviously red blush on her face.

"All done!" Nowaki smiled as he helped the girl, who looked a year or two older then the secret assassin, stand up from the bench and walk over to the door. "Now please be more careful next time!" He winked, causing the girl to squeal, bow, and run away. Shinobu smirked.

"You're probably going to be seeing her and a lot of her friends in here a lot." He joked. Nowaki nervously smiled, scratching the back of his raven colored head.

"Maybe, but how was your first day of school?" He asked, turning around to put the ointment and Band-Aids he had used on the girl away. "Make any new friends?" Shinobu sighed as he recalled when he first got to the school, and the strange professor he met.

"Well, I already almost got beat up." Nowaki turned towards the teen with wide eyes full of concern.

"Really? By who?" He asked. Shinobu shrugged.

"I don't know and really don't care. I wasn't going to do anything so I didn't blow my cover, and a teacher came over and stopped then. When the students ran away and I went to thank the guy, he whispered the word 'You…' and stared intently at me, then saying that he spaced out and kept changing the subject." Shinobu narrowed his eyes. "I think he knows me from somewhere, and is trying to hide the fact that he does." Shinobu left out the part about feeling warm near the man and waited patiently for his friend's reaction. Nowaki raised his hand to his chin in thought.

"Strange…" He said. "You should talk to him more, because maybe you have met before and just don't remember." His face grew serious. "And if he does know who you are or what you do, find out whether he is a friend or an enemy."

"Okay." Shinobu nodded when the door opened and footsteps were heard beside him. The two males turned around to see Professor Kamijou standing there, an annoyed look on his face, holding out a text book to the teen. The book was orange with the words BASIC LITERATURE on the cover. Shinobu looked up at the teacher with a confused look.

"I forgot to give you your book," the teacher mumbled, looking at the teen and the dark haired man behind him. "What are you doing in here?" He asked the boy, raising an eyebrow. Shinobu put on a scowl and crossed his arms.

"Obviously, if this is the nurse's office, I must be hurt." He smirked, watching the teacher's expression turn angry.

"Shinobu-kun, don't be so rude!" He heard Nowaki scold him from behind. The teen turned to frown at the man when he saw his friend's gaze fixed on the professor in front of them. The dark haired man took a step forward, a warm smile on his face. "Sorry about that, this student is a relative of mine and he's staying with me so he can go to school here. He was just waiting for me to take him home."

"I see," Kamijou nodded as he handed the book to Shinobu. "You should teach him some manners." Shinobu opened his mouth to protest when Nowaki cut in.

"I apologize, it's just that he's been home schooled all of his life and doesn't quite know how to treat teachers yet." The teen crossed his arms in defiance. All of a sudden, the door flew open again and a taller form ran in, glomping the short professor.

"Hiroki-ah, I mean Kamijou! I found you!" The higher yet familiar voice sang and Shinobu gasped as he recognized the taller man that was hugging his professor, despite the latter's exasperated protests.

"M-Miyagi-san!" Miyagi turned to see the teen standing beside the school's new nurse. Instantly his arms dropped and he stepped away from the shorter man. In an attempt to find some sense in the room, Shinobu looked over at his older companion to see Nowaki's face dark as he looked on towards the tall, dark haired professor.

_Weird…_Shinobu thought before turning back towards the two faculty members.

"Ahh, Shinobu-chin, what a nice surprise!" Miyagi smiled, scratching the back of his head with a nervous laugh.

"Uh, yeah," Shinobu agreed, averting his gaze towards the floor. The way the literature professor acted towards his subordinate made him angry, probably because it wasn't school-decent behavior.

"Can I help you?" Nowaki asked Miyagi, a dark tint covering his voice. The older male shook his head.

"No, not at all, I just needed to steal professor Kamijou from you guys for a while. It's very important." The assistant professor turned towards his boss and, as if having an unspoken conversation, crossed his arms and let out a long drawn out sigh.

"Fine, but next time you're looking for me and find me, please approach me in a more decent manner."

"I make no promises!" Miyagi smiled as he grabbed the shorter man's arm. He looked over at Shinobu with a smile.

"Bye, Shinobu-chin and…" he trailed off as he looked over at Nowaki.

"Kusama," Nowaki said and the literature professor nodded.

"Okay, bye you two!" he said cheerfully and ran out the door, Hiroki in tow shouting obscenities. Neither of the two remaining males spoke for a few seconds until Shinobu broke the silence.

"That was…weird." He said as he looked towards his friend. Nowaki didn't say anything as he continued staring at the door. "Nowaki?" Shinobu asked after a few seconds. The raven haired man sighed and turned around, continuing where he left off with cleaning his office up.

"Shinobu-kun…" He said after another few seconds passed by. The light haired teen tried to get a look of the older male's face which was shadowed by his hair.

"Nowaki, what's wrong?" he asked, concern in his voice.

"I…" Nowaki started as he stopped cleaning and turned towards the young assassin. He had a wide, goofy grin on his face, completely contradicting the seemingly dark and depressing air he held about him less then a moment ago. "…I'm in love!" Shinobu breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh, that's good, I thought—" when suddenly the words that his friend had just spoken echoed throughout his head, and his grey eyes opened wide in shock and confusion, mouth hanging slightly open. "—wait, what?"

* * *

**A/N**

**Yay, second chapter is done! I told you it would be a lot longer! Though future chapters should end up longer then this sometimes too! **

**Anyways, I hope this chapter doesn't seem rushed, I just wanted to get it up as soon as possible. So if I made any mistakes like spelling or grammar, then that's why.**

**So what did you think? I introduced some familiar characters like Miyagi, Misaki, and Hiroki! YAY! Though all of their interactions with Shinobu may be brief, I want you to remember how they all reacted to each other, like Shinobu with Hiroki in certain spots, and especially the meeting between Shinobu and Miyagi and the interactions between him and Misaki. They all play a vital role in the plot! I don't want to give anything else away, so just don't forget any key items I include as well! **

**Please review! Reviews encourage me to update faster since I know people are actually reading this story! NO FLAMES PLEASE**

**Thank you! :D**


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